FACT CHECK: Bucana Bridge project secured funding under Duterte, completed under Marcos admin

Claim: The administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte should be credited for the Bucana Bridge project in Davao City.

Rating: MISSING CONTEXT

Why we fact-checked this: Supporters of Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. are clashing online on who should take the credit for the completion of the 1.3-kilometer bridge, also known as the Davao River Bridge. 

On December 4, Marcos inspected the bridge ahead of its December 15 opening and described the bridge as among the four “legacy projects” of his administration in Davao. 

A Facebook post by Sir Jack Argota, reaching 48,000 reactions, 6,400 comments, and 4,300 shares, reads, “Isa ito sa magandang proyekto ni Presidente Rody Duterte ang Bucana Bridge. Wag nyo angkinin yan mga khupahI! Asikasuhin nyo mga Ghost Project nyo!”

(This is one of the good projects of President Rody Duterte: the Bucana Bridge. Don’t grab credit, ingrates! Mind your ghost projects instead!)

Similar posts also circulated online, thanking Duterte for his efforts to improve Davao City while lambasting Marcos for alleged credit-grabbing. 

The facts: Construction for the Davao River Bridge began under Marcos’ term, but funding for the project was secured under the Duterte administration. 

In an interview at The Hague on December 5, Vice President Sara Duterte credited her father for the bridge, highlighting that the former president was the one who secured funding for the project.

In 2018, during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to the Philippines, the Duterte administration signed 29 deals with China, including the Exchange of Letters for the Bucana Bridge project, signed on November 20, 2018. The project was funded through China’s Official Development Assistance.

However, it was during Marcos’ term that the project was approved, and construction started. The President said that the project was approved in July 2022 — a month after Duterte stepped down from office. According to an article from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the implementation agreement for the project was signed on October 20, 2023. Then-DPWH Secretary Manuel Bonoan signed the P3.1-billion civil works contract with the China Road and Bridge Corporation on November 10, 2023.

The Davao River Bridge project began construction in November 2023 and will officially open to motorists in December 2025.

Easing traffic: The Davao River Bridge is a major segment of the Davao Coastal Bypass Road, linking Barangay 76-A Bucana and Matina Aplaya, and can accommodate almost 14,000 cars a day. 

According to Marcos, the opening of the Davao River Bridge will significantly lessen travel time for motorists from nearly two hours to only 20 to 30 minutes once operational. 

The President also noted that the entire Davao City bypass will be completed by December 2027. – Marc Nathaniel Servo/Rappler.com

Marc Nathaniel Servo is a Rappler intern. He is a fourth-year journalism student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and the former Associate Editor of PUP College of Communication’s The Communicator.

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